The Benefits of Oat Milk

Those of us who avoid dairy milk, by choice or necessity, are fortunate to live in a time when multiple delicious and healthy milk alternatives are easy to find. Oat milk is a wonderful way to receive essential nutrition from a natural, lactose free, and sustainable source every day.

Oats have many healing properties and are best known for their high protein and fiber content and cholesterol reducing abilities. Oats can enhance the immune system, prevent cardiovascular diseases, maintain healthy cholesterol and blood sugar levels, provide strength and energy from natural plant proteins and sugars, and improve the health of your skin and hair.

Oat milk is something you can easily find in almost any grocery store. Please note that the following nutritional information offered here will vary based on the brand of oat milk you choose to purchase. Each brand adds different amounts of extra ingredients to produce a unique and desirable taste, some brands also fortify their products.

The average cup of oat milk available for purchase will contain about 4 g of protein, 130 calories, 2.5 g fat, 110 g sodium, 19 g sugar, 2 g fiber, and 24 grams of carbohydrates. Oat milk is also completely void of cholesterol and saturated fats.

Oat milk is an extremely health-concious choice, high in natural fiber and iron, and low in fat, sugars, and calories. Switching to oat milk is a preferable option if you are looking to lose weight.

Oat milk also provides many important vitamins and minerals including manganese, potassium, phosphorus, many B vitamins, vitamin E, and Vitamin A. Oat milk also contains a type of antioxidant called phytochemicals, which can protect against diseases including heart disease, stroke, and some cancers.

Those with a gluten intolerance have to avoid store bought oat milk, but can make it themselves using gluten free oats. Oats also have skin clearing properties and drinking oat milk has been known to clear acne and improve the overall health of the skin, as well as strengthen and repair hair.

Oat milk in stores is thinner and has a more subtle flavor than other milk substitutes, it is very versatile can be used just as dairy milk in cooking or drunk plain or with cereal or a hot beverage.

Making your own homemade oat milk has many benefits. When you make it yourself, you don’t have to worry about any unnatural addetives you may find in commercial brands. Buying oats, especially in bulk, is extremely affordable, and you can save a lot of money by cutting cows milk from your grocery budget. Making homemade oat milk is very simple, and fun as well. You can experiment with different textures and flavors, and cater your beverage to your needs by having complete control over the caloric, sugar, and gluten content, as well as the flavor and texture.

Oat milk is the easiest milk substitute to make in your own kitchen, as well as one of the cheapest. There are many different ways to go about making oat milk.

There are multiple oat milk recipes that are suitable for raw foodists. Quick oats or rolled oats, either soaked overnight or dry, can be blended with water and strained to make oat milk. If you have a coffee grinder, you can also try grinding the oats on the finest setting and stirring them into water.

You can also try blending cooked oats with water to make the milk creamier, or boiling the oats in an access of water and staining the mixture. The more powerful your blender, the smoother your oat milk will be, if you have a soy or nut milk maker, you can use this to make oat milk as well.

A basic ratio for oat milk is a oat : water ratio of 1:2. However, it is advised that you experiment with the thickness of your beverage. You can make your oat milk as thick, creamy, or thin as you would like by straining the blended mixture more or less.

The oats left in the nutcloth or cheesecloth after straining can be eaten, added to a smoothie, or used as a facial mask for clear and soft skin.

From here, you can experiment with adding anything you would like to your recipe. Oat milk is naturally sweet, but for a sweeter or even dessert-like drink, try adding sugar, brown sugar, molasses, maple syrup, or agave. For a special flavor you may like to add coconut shavings, or ripe strawberries or bananas. Adding the banana is also a good way to thicken the oat milk without worrying about lumps, and add some extra nutritional value. Some other suggested flavorings and spices for experimentation include cinnamon, cloves, cardamom, nutmeg, salt, vanilla, or chocolate.

Whether you choose to drink oat milk for the health benefits, taste, cheap cost, dairy intollerence, or vegan diet I hope that this article will help you enjoy your drink more by understanding the benefits of what you are consuming, and the enjoyment gained by making it yourself.